RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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FIFA president Gianni Infantino’s ploy to sell stakes in the World Cup to private investors has angered another significant party. Carlos Cordeiro, one of Infantino’s top advisors, resigned from his position at FIFA over Infantino’s proposal.
Cordeiro announced his decision in a scathing statement that made clear he was strongly opposed to the idea of selling stakes in the event.
A portion of his statement read:
“As a Senior Advisor to the FIFA President, a former banker, and a lifelong football fan, I cannot stand by while FIFA considers selling a stake in the World Cup.
“Let me be clear: I had no involvement in this proposal, and I oppose it unequivocally. It is a bad deal for FIFA’s Member Associations, a bad deal for football, and a bad deal for the long-term future of the game.”
Cordeiro then called for FIFA’s proposal to be rejected.
Later in his statement, Cordeiro claimed FIFA has “extraordinary financial resources” and doesn’t need private investment. FIFA is set to make a revenue around $15 billion for the 2022-26 World Cup cycle, per The Times
Cordeiro also questioned the timing of Infantino’s proposal.
“Why this deal? Why now? What oversight exists? Who benefits? Was there a competitive process? What governance will be in place? What will investors ultimately gain, and at what cost to football?”
He eventually called the proposal a “defining question for FIFA’s future” before announcing his resignation.
Cordeiro was far from the only significant voice to take a stand. On Thursday, UEFA announced a boycott of the World Cup and all FIFA-run competitions until the proposal was scrapped and Infantino promised to never go down that road again. Concacaf didn’t announce a boycott, but issued a critical response calling out Infantino for not going through the proper channels before trying to push a deal through.
FIFA responded to both UEFA and Concacaf late Thursday, expressing disappointment that the proposal leaked. FIFA decided to put the decision on all member associations, saying they should all “have the opportunity to take meaningful ownership of the commercial opportunity of football in their respective countries.”
FIFA’s statement declared, “Nobody is selling football. This is not something FIFA would ever entertain.”
Cordeiro has been with FIFA since 2021. Prior to that, he served as U.S. Soccer president between 2018 and 2020. He r esigned from that position after a disagreement with the USWNT over equal pay.
In his resignation letter from FIFA, Cordeiro urged others at the organization to speak up in opposition to the proposal.
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